The Editor

I loved this book. I loved the humor, pathos, the search for identity and belonging. James Smale is writing an autobiographical novel wherein his mother Aileen Smale is the central figure. How could she not be? She chose James over her husband. She was always the constant in James life. Much of the book is devoted to James’ need to decode who she is until there are no more secrets and the potential damage it will do to their relationship.

Depicted with wit and hilarious inner dialogue James has his less than memorable moments and humbly acknowledges his failures. Set in New York in the 1990s the description of the publishing world is James ability to differentiate between a “beige girl” and a “Power beige”. Upon their first show more meeting, he bows to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, his Editor, because he doesn’t know the protocol. He has a coping mechanism of performing ten jumping jacks and that can happen in the most inappropriate places. He apologizes frequently. I like him a lot.

Watching a TV clip of the Clintons walking from the Capitol to the White House James Smale reflects that “An administration is judged by whether or not it fulfills the promise of its start. A book should be judged in a similar way”. Mr. Rowley you have hit a home run.

Thank you Netgalley and Putnam for a copy. show less

How lucky am I to read another ARC right after Finding Dorothy, which I loved, which is even a little better! While it did take me a little while to finally settle down into the book’s rhythm, once I did, I read it straight through and finished it with a lump in my throat and holding back tears. This is from someone who literally never cries about anything (except dog commercials!)

Our main character, James Smale has struggled as a writer for years when he finally gets his big break with his novel. Though “fiction”, it is based on his mother and his own dysfunctional family. When Doubleday picks up his book, he goes to meet with his editor who turns out to be Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. You can be sure I went to the author’s show more notes immediately to make sure this was real fiction, because it felt so real!

Jackie and our young author develop an unexpected friendship and she encourages him to go back home and confront head on the truth about his relationship with his mother so that his book has a more authentic ending. The secret that his mother finally tells him and his siblings at the Thanksgiving table, no less, sends him reeling. How he handles this news makes for a great read. But, I have to be honest, the best part of this book is Jackie Onassis. A five star read for me! show less

The cover of the audio version gives nothing away. Not until you start listening to writer James Smale narrating his story do you realize that his novel has been chosen by Doubleday and that the editor who chose it is Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. The best fun is their first meeting - James just cannot believe his good fortune and must transcend his awe and hero worship to do the hard work of fixing The Pandemic to Jackie's high standards. Their working sessions are an enjoyable combination of his terror and her serenity, and, as in his breakout novel The Gunkle, there's a ton of sly humor. James and his mother have massive ongoing tension, and since she is the unwilling subject of the novel, the fact that James must describe how his show more coming out destroyed his parents’ marriage and caused his father’s subsequent abandonment is a major factor blocking his progress. There's also his partner Daniel, a theatre director who is frustrated by James's singular focus on himself. There are two major surprises that are well-presented. The only minor weaknesses are a bit too much mushiness, and James's complete lack of friends. But it's a very satisfying listen and narrator Michael Urie acquits himself well. show less

I listened to this audiobook last month and with my current work book club being "The Guncle" by the same author I figured it's time to share my thoughts.

The Editor revolves around James Smale, a struggling writer who unexpectedly finds himself collaborating with the iconic editor, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis on his semiautobiographical book about his own mother. As James navigates the demanding world of publishing and grapples with personal demons, he embarks on a transformative journey that compels him to confront his past and rediscover his own unique voice.

“Hard truths can drive people apart. But great art can bring them back together.”

I struggled with the inclusion of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis beyond the celebrity factor but show more as the story unfolded, I began to appreciate how Rowley used her presence to challenge James's complicated relationship with his own mother. James is captivated by Jackie, and this enables her to push him where another editor would not have succeeded. While the exploration of his relationship with his own mother occasionally takes a backseat, it becomes clear that it couldn't have unfolded without Jackie's encouragement for him to embrace honesty and authenticity in his writing.

The exploration of the publishing industry and the editing process adds an intriguing layer to the story, highlighting the challenges and triumphs that come with shaping a manuscript into a published work. This aspect will undoubtedly resonate with aspiring writers and book lovers alike.

I particularly appreciated the representation of James's long-term boyfriend and their relationship, which felt genuine and well-developed.

Overall, "The Editor" is an immersive tale that explores the transformative power of storytelling. While I initially questioned the inclusion of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Steven Rowley skillfully integrates her presence to challenge and enrich the protagonist's journey. This novel prompts readers to contemplate their own connections to art, heritage, and the profound impact of the stories we tell. show less

A special thank you to Edelweiss and Penguin First to Read/Penguin Publishing Group for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

James Smale is a struggling writer in 1990s New York City. He finally sells his novel to a major publishing house, but what he doesn't know, is that his big break comes because one of the most famous women in America has championed his work.

His editor is none other than Jacqueline Kenney Onasis—or Mrs. Onassis as she is called in the office—as in the former First Lady of the United States. She happened to fall in love with Jame's candid semi-autobiographical novel that pulls back the curtain on his own dysfunctional family.

The stress of publication is putting on strain on James' relationships with both his show more partner and his family. James suddenly finds himself unable to finish the manuscript even with Jackie's encouragement.

Jackie and James develop a friendship and it is Jackie who persuades James to visit his mother. James returns home to confront the truth about his relationship with his mother and during the visit, a family secret is unearthed. It is another mother's intuition that has a hand in James' life's plan.

Rowley's latest book is about mothers and sons and an unexpected friendship that will forever change one man.

What I found so fantastic is that Jackie didn't eclipse James. Jackie is the perfect addition to the story with her poise, grace, and sophistication. There is also an immense sadness about her and instead of being swallowed up and consumed by grief, she and the story are empathetic and clever. Rowley took a risk using someone as famous as Jackie Kennedy Onassis because she could have stolen the scenes away from James thus making him more of a supporting character, but this doesn't happen at all. Rowley stays true to James' story. He is a well-developed character with an incredible amount of depth and growth. What happens instead is the two characters play off one another, and the reader is a witness to their beautiful friendship. It is so endearing and his words are as elegant as Jackie herself. show less

‘The truth of the matter is, it’s all too much. Clinton, Kennedy, nostalgia, melancholy. Things that are not coming back. Things that perhaps never were. I feel a deep need to believe there was another time, before, when everything seemed right.’

The early 1990s, and a novelist, James Francis Smale (his middle name becomes important as we go!), gets his first book picked up by a major US publisher, and is assigned an editor – none other than Jackie Kennedy Onassis. This is the set-up of Steven Rowley’s novel, which becomes a sort of meta-fiction on the art of writing autobiographical fiction. James has family issues, in particular with his mother, and so has written his novel as a way of coming to terms with her, the family and show more how their relationship has become strained. It is also, in part, a portrait – in Jackie Onassis – of an icon, a woman who has been through so much and is held in such regard, but who is also just a rather lonely, vulnerable human being. There is a tenderness to the portrayal of her character, and she becomes a second ‘mother’ to the central character, helping him rewrite not only his novel but his relationship with his real mother.

I did enjoy the book immensely, and Rowley is a terrific writer. The blend of fact and fiction is well done, and setting the book in the last couple of years of Jackie Onassis’ life also, conveniently, places it at the time of the Clinton presidential campaign. There is a feeling in the air of hope, of starting again, which of course echoes the time thirty years earlier when JFK ran for office. James Smale is trying to heal his own life by writing his novel, a kind of therapy if you will. He has a settled life of his own, his long-time partner Daniel is a stable and loving support, but in the course of the book family secrets come to life that shake him to the core. And whilst I did admire the book, this is where it loses the one star for me; the two big set-pieces of the novel – a Thanksgiving dinner and the book launch party – were perhaps just a little too melodramatic, a little too ‘here’s a big moment coming’. And whilst James Smale rewrites the ending to his book to make it a less ‘tidy conclusion’, the actual novel we have seems, well, all tidy at the end. Relationships appear to be mended, mistakes forgiven.

All in all, a really worthwhile read; there is great empathy for the characters, the hope of dreams is captured well, and the journey is an emotional one. I’m not afraid to say I cried at times, and laughed too. After his first novel ‘Lily and the Octopus’ Steven Rowley is fast-becoming an established author and I fully recommend this one. show less

When I read the synopsis of this book I was a little skeptical -- a fictional author whose first manuscript is accepted by Jackie Kennedy Onassis as his editor at Doubleday. It was a touching, beautiful story. The character development was quite good and the story, which explores mother-son relationships but is also filled with wit and warmth, is engaging. It is at once an odyssey and redemption tale. The author character, James, is a diva, but an endearing one despite his annoying self-centeredness and penchant for drama. And Jackie O is portrayed so beautifully.